Have you always been into animation?

I loved cartoons probably from the age of two. There was a few years in between growing out of Disney stuff and getting interested in Animé where I probably only had the "Simpsons" to watch, but these days there's plenty of animation for adults, and the Internet of course, so I still find there's lots of stuff I enjoy watching.

Tell us about yourself and where the ladies can send their marriage proposals.

I'm from Brisbane, Australia, and am in a relationship. The idea of marriage scares me though! Not the one partner part, just the ceremony and pomp.

What sort of training do you have?

I have a Diploma of Animation from a college here in Australia, and am currently in my third year of a three year animation course at Griffith Uni, which I've deferred until next year (or the year after that or the year after that) to work on the series. While doing the diploma in 2005 I encountered Flash and had an instant attraction to it, finally I could make my own cartoons without scanning every single drawing and no huge file sizes! I've done various freelancing jobs for a few years as well but the majority of my learning has taken place working on my own cartoons.

Where did you come up with the characters?

I wanted to try a story with anthropomorphic characters (talking animals with human qualities) in a sitcom situation. George draws on my time working at a bank in London, though I wasn't desperately unhappy like he is. I liked the idea of a cute animated character who's life really sucks, so he lashes out at those around him just like a human! George is probably the only character who draws on my own experiences though. Herb the Lobster is probably one of my oldest characters, I can't remember why I drew a lobster with a moustache all those years ago but it struck me as funny!

Is George really prejudiced or is he an equal opportunity hater?

He hates himself first and foremost, then he hates lizards, then he hates everyone else.

Who are your influences?

Writing wise I'd say I'm more influenced by people I know and conversations I've had with them than any established authors. I used to hear my animations reminded people of Hunter S. Thompson's writing style in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" but I don't think you'll find his influence in "Angry Dog". Animation wise I'm told my style is "western Animé", I think it's because I use black outlines and bright colours like Animé, but hopefully not character design wise. There's probably a little bit of Disney and "Ren & Stimpy" in there too.

What's your work process like?

I sketch out each scene really roughly in a sketchbook, including ideas for separate poses, expressions etc. I scan in the sketches and draw over them and improve them a little in Flash and make an animatic. I export each separate drawing as a png and draw over them all in Illustrator. This process takes 2-3 days for an episode, so I've probably spent a week on it so far. Then depending on how large the episode is I'll spend between a week and two weeks drawing the inbetweens and colouring everything in Flash, along the way editing the dialogue. Finally I go through and do all the lip syncing, which takes between 3-4 days and usually drives me nuts. Then theres a day at the end of recording various sounds and doing fixes and odd jobs I've left till last. From start to finish 3-4 weeks, or 160-240 hours.

Did you always intend for "Angry Dog" to evolve into a series?

I always intended to make more after the first one, it was always a case of wanting to try other things first since I'd already made one though. People responded more to the characters in Angry Dog than any of my other characters so I knew they were worth coming back to. I've really enjoyed animating them again and creating more stories for them.

Check out Chris Voigt's website: Greasymoose.com

Watch the Angry Dog Series

Go to the ANGRY DOG Boomzone